MinDA seeks police aid vs ASF entry in Mindanao

October 1, 2019

The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) has asked the Philippine National Police ( PNP) to help in ensuring no hogs, pork and other pork products from African swine fever-infected areas could enter Mindanao.

In a statement on his Facebook page, MinDa Chairman Emmanuel Pinol said he wrote a letter to Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Ano and PNP chief General Oscar Albayalde seeking for their assistance.

"In view of the unanimous position of the Chief Executives of Local Government Units in Mindanao and Palawan to ban the entry of live hogs, pork and processed pork products from areas affected by the African Swine Fever, may I request for the immediate deployment of members of the Philippine National Police to the various quarantine stations established by the LGUs to support the enforcement of the ban," Pinol said in a letter to Ano dated September 30.

The DILG oversees the PNP.

Pinol said the request was being made with "urgency" in view of reports of hogs, pork and processed pork products still being transported to Mindanao and Visayas from Luzon and other countries affected by ASF.

He said LGUs lack manpower to enforce the ban, thus, MinDa was making a representation on their behalf to appeal for support from the DILG and the PNP.

He noted that earlier Mindanao local government executives led by Davao City  Mayor Sarah Duterte-Carpio issued an executive order enforcing a temporary ban on shipment of live hogs, pork and other processed pork products.

"Mindanao and the Visayas have remained ASF free because of the vigilance and involvement of local government executives and the hog industry stakeholders," said Pinol, a former agriculture secretary.

The Mindanao Hog Raisers group earlier issued a manifesto supporting the move of Mindanao local government units to ban the entry of hogs, pork and processed pork products and the practice of feeding backyard hogs with food wastes or swill feeding, Pinol said.

Recently, Pangasinan confirmed cases of ASF in the province after local traders allegedly brought ASF-infected hogs from Bulacan.

The Department of Agriculture had confirmed ASF cases in Bulacan and Rizal provinces. Celerina Monte/DMS